There is a fit & happier person inside everyone

Monthly Archives: May 2013

For the last several years, fitness industry publications have been flirting with the question of whether or not there is such a thing as too much exercise as it pertains to overall health and, in particular, the heart. This has become a lightening rod issue for an industry that makes its living off of getting people to start exercising and keep exercising. Particularly in a culture where less than a third of the population meets exercise standards set by the U.S. government. What has happened in the past is those who have conducted studies that seem to suggest there are diminishing returns when it comes to the relationship between extreme cardiovascular exercise and heart health have been challenged by others in the industry who believe the studies are based on mere anecdotal evidence. The latter have been winning the argument when measured by what has been written about this topic in mainstream publications over the last two years. Until now.

The Wall Street Journal which, as recently as January 2012, published a report debunking claims that extreme endurance sports like marathons and triathlons cause heart problems published, “The Exercise Equivalent of Cheeseburgers?” by Kevin Helliker this past Friday. I won’t reiterate the details of the studies but the conclusion is that, in apparently healthy adults, cardiovascular benefits increase in relation to total weekly distance run until the amount of miles run per week exceeds 30. In other words, your heart gets healthier and the risk for heart disease lowers the more miles you run per week until the amount reaches 30 miles per week. The studies seem to indicate that running more than 30 miles per week doesn’t increase the benefits but, rather, increases the risk for developing heart problems. Another study looked at individuals who already had heart disease. The results showed that individuals would see improvements in heart health from running until they reached 11.4 miles of running per week. Any amount above 11.4 miles of running per week worsened the condition and increased mortality risk.

I understand the instinct by fitness professionals to push back. First, many professionals are extreme endurance exercisers themselves and we are all-in when it comes to exercising for health. It seems counterintuitive to imagine that any form of exercise could be harmful to anyone much less ourselves. Second, the health risks of not exercising are well documented and we are a nation of couch potatoes. Fitness professionals fear that releasing this information prematurely will unnecessarily discourage the sedentary from starting any form of exercise.

I have a slightly different take. By no means do I believe this issue is settled. The recent studies are concerning and show a worrisome trend. Given this, priority needs to be given to conducting more studies, making them more vigorous and in-depth. In the meantime, we in the industry owe it to all amateur endurance athletes to be honest about scientific studies pertaining to endurance sports. We want them to be well-informed so that they can make intelligent, thoughtful decisions about their own health. We should encourage them to review their training regimens with fitness professionals to ensure that they are progressed properly, incorporate enough rest and recovery and include strength and flexibility training in addition to cardio. We should also encourage them to speak with medical professionals about their concerns. Their primary care physicians are in the best position to take into consideration their overall health, family medical history along with the latest studies and be able to offer individualized counsel based on those parameters. They are also in the best position to refer patients to a specialist, such as a cardiologist, if there is concern.

As for the argument that the studies create an excuse for non-exercisers to avoid exercise, I don’t believe that’s reason to suppress what appears to be valid science. Do you think that sedentary people believe they will ever run a marathon or compete in a triathlon? Many probably can’t imagine themselves running a mile much less a marathon. Yes, some may put this on their list of reasons why they don’t need to or shouldn’t exercise. But, let’s face it, the lists of reasons for why we don’t exercise are incredibly long and this excuse probably goes on the very bottom. As fitness professionals, it’s our job to convince the sedentary to start moving and to give them the tools to find the motivation within themselves to keep going. Basically, if a fitness instructor can get a non-exerciser to overcome the top three excuses she has for not exercising, that instructor has a convert. Publishing a study won’t make a bit of difference for that person.

My philosophy on fitness places a huge emphasis on balance and moderation. I don’t support the go-big-or-go-home-all-or-nothing attitude towards exercise. Perhaps it is true that too much exercise is as bad as too little exercise. But we don’t know for sure – the jury is still out. So, let’s all take a deep breath, be well informed, be safe, be open minded and know that if our goal remains to nourish ourselves equally mind, body and soul then we’re on the right track. Pun intended.

My clients have something in common. Every one of them came to me for personal training because they had tried many times to establish a fitness routine but were unable to sustain it. They all are moms but each has very different schedules. Some have very young children, others have their children in school full-time. Some work full-time away from home, others work part-time or at home. Some exercised regularly at some point in their lives, others hadn’t. So, one can’t say that a particular schedule, life stage or lack of experience is to blame for the difficulty in establishing a fitness routine. The reality is that everyone who struggles to incorporate regular exercise into her life is making at least one critical mistake early on that is repeatedly derailing her. Here are the three most common mistakes most novice exercisers make that significantly decreases their chances of long-term exercise adherence.

Too Much, Too Fast

This can encompass many scenarios. The most obvious is someone who has not exercised regularly, if ever, begins a high-intensity or long-duration workout with the idea that she’ll be able to shed pounds faster. This will lead to immediate physical discomfort, psychological discouragement in short order and, at worst, injury. Similarly, deciding to go from working out less than once a week to working out 5 or 6 days a week is unrealistic and will lead to abandonment of exercise altogether. Sometimes biting off more than you can chew isn’t about the intensity, duration or frequency of the exercise regimen but the investment in it. Many believe that if they shell out a lot of money for a gym membership, home exercise equipment or DVD series they will be incentivized to stick with it because of what it cost them. But, once the money is gone from the bank account, it’s gone. There’s no longer a financial incentive attached to working out.

Novice exercisers are negatively effected by their perceived failures more than they are positively effected by their perceived triumphs. Miss a workout and you will view it as a failure and the negative internal dialogue begins – I can’t do this, it’s too hard, I’m not good at this, I’m too busy. Better to begin with a goal that is attainable until a routine can be established: one exercise bout per week. Celebrate those workout days and give yourself a pat on the back, every single one of them is a triumph. Maybe there will be times when you can fit in a second day in a week, treat that as extra credit. If a week comes along when you miss your goal – big project at work, illness, vacation – it won’t derail you. You can tell yourself that you’re cashing in your extra credit and plan to get right back on track the next week. You have an entire lifetime to work up to five or six workout days a week. You wouldn’t want your teenager setting off on a cross-country road trip the day after he got his driver’s license, why would you expect yourself to be able to handle a veteran exerciser’s weekly regimen right off the bat?

Going It Alone

This mistake is a bigger one for women than men. Numerous studies on exercise adherence show that those who exercise with a partner or as part of a group are much more likely to achieve exercise adherence than those who don’t. These same studies indicate that the correlation between exercising alone and failure to adhere is stronger for women. Of course, this is a generalization and there are many men and women who enjoy, actually prefer, to workout alone. I am one of them. But if you have repeatedly tried to adopt a regular fitness regimen on your own and have been unable to sustain it, you are not likely one of them. You probably need the motivation and accountability of an exercise buddy. The socialization that takes place during exercise with a partner also creates positive reinforcement – you enjoy the experience with your partner which gives you overall positive feelings associated with the workout itself. This makes you more likely to repeatedly return to workout and less likely to skip a workout. My one caveat is to be choosey about your partner. This is a huge commitment. In order to achieve success, you want the partner to be someone who is dependable, is as committed as you are to the process and with whom you get along.

Self-Sabotage

Like anything else you aim to be successful at, effort is not only required during the activity but also leading up to the activity. To not put some forethought and planning into building your fitness routine is to sabotage yourself. Regardless of where you workout – at a gym, fitness studio or along the sidewalks in your neighborhood – you should schedule your workouts just as you would any other important appointment on your calendar. The time you set aside for a workout is your time and is one of the most important investments in your health that you make. Schedule it on your calendar every week and plan your day around keeping that appointment. That means being prepared: have your workout clothes in your car, pre-arrange childcare and make sure everyone in your household is aware of your workout schedule, that you consider it a priority and, therefore, so should they.

Unexpected events that require our attention arise almost on a daily basis, especially when children are in the picture. But putting fitness and health at the top of your list means attaching high priority status to your workouts. If the event wouldn’t cause you to reschedule a doctor’s appointment or medical test, parent-teacher conference, lunch with a friend or business meeting, then it shouldn’t be a reason to skip your workout. Even illness isn’t always a good excuse to sit it out. If you don’t have a fever, diarrhea, vomiting or respiratory distress then a walk outdoors at a moderate pace, low-intensity strength workout or gentle yoga may actually help with symptoms of a mild cold.

There will be times when an emergency causes you to legitimately cancel a workout. Be prepared for that too. First, accept that it will happen and guard against guilty feelings or beating yourself up over it. Second, plan for cancellations. Have back-up slots scheduled on your calendar to fit in a workout reschedule or to use as your extra credit workout. For tips on how to do this effectively see my May Small Steps post here.

In the end, the best approach to establishing a successful fitness regimen while avoiding pitfalls can be summarized this way: be realistic and take it in small, incremental steps and make fitness a priority by creating a supportive network and planning ahead. This is more about having the right state of mind than it is about having willpower or hyper-motivation. The willpower and motivation will not always be there and those are precisely the days that keeping your eyes on the fitness prize will be what gets you to and through your workout.

My Balance Series explores the different aspects of a fit life in terms of creating the right balance of variables. Each aspect has three main variables and each variable must have equal attention – like a three-legged stool – in order to be effective. Part 1 of the series established that a balanced life is one that nourishes equally the aspects of mind, body and soul and that fitness equates with the body piece of that life. Furthermore, proper fitness is a balance of exercise, diet and rest. Part 2 addresses the exercise leg of the fitness stool: cardiovascular, strength, and flexibility training.

But before I elaborate on those components, it is necessary to ask what is the value of exercise? For many women, the value almost entirely revolves around body image. Lots of us begin exercise programs because we want to lose weight in order to look better. Many of us who exercise regularly do it out of fear of gaining weight because of what that means asthetically. This is not to say that the desire to lose weight or the fear of gaining weight aren’t good motivators. But when our self-esteem and self-worth are mostly wrapped up in our body image, we are not living a life in balance. Nor are we putting fitness as our primary goal. If being fit is your true goal, then the following is the formula to meet the exercise component of fitness:

Cardiovascular Training

The US Department of Health and Human Services recommends that all apparently healthy adults engage in a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity aerobic activity every week to maintain a healthy weight and reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases, type II diabetes, hypertension and some cancers. In addition, regular cardio exercise has been linked to increased cognitive function, alleviation of symptoms of depression, reduced discomfort from menstruation and menopause, more restful sleep and overall feelings of well-being and increased energy. Moderate intensity exercise would include brisk walking while running is an example of vigorous exercise. But intensity does vary from person to person and depends upon the age, weight and fitness level of the individual. A simple test can be used to gauge the intensity of your workouts. If you can recite a paragraph from memory, such as the Pledge of Allegiance, while you’re moving without any difficulty and no perceptible difference than if you were standing still, you are working at an intensity that’s too low. If you can recite it without much difficulty but with breaths between phrases becoming more perceptible, you are exercising at a moderate intensity. If it is very difficult for you to recite the entire pledge without pausing to take deep breaths, you’re at a vigorous level.

Ignore those who say that one form of exercise is better than another or that there is a hard and fast rule to how many times per week one should do cardio and for how long. If you don’t enjoy it, if you can’t fit it into your schedule or if it’s too difficult for you, you won’t stick to it. Whatever wayyou can regularly achieve the guidelines described above is the best way.

Strength Training

In recent years, the Body Mass Index (BMI) has been used to determine the overall health of individuals. It’s a tempting method to use because it’s derived from a very simple formula using height and weight. But BMI isn’t the best indicator of health. A much better measure is the ratio of a person’s lean body mass to fat body mass. The challenge is it’s very difficult and often expensive to measure accurately. My philosophy is that all apparently healthy women, even those with a normal BMI, should assume that their lean mass to fat mass ratio can be improved and here is why. Beginning around the age of 30, a woman who doesn’t strength train will lose about ½ pound of muscle mass per year. Over time, this will slow her metabolic rate regardless of whether or not she does cardiovascular training. And, unless she reduces her daily caloric intake or increases her cardio regimen to compensate for the slower metabolism, she will gain weight in the form of body fat. In addition, as she reaches menopause, estrogen production decreases, which affects bone health. However, if she incorporates the strength training component of exercise into her regimen, she will regenerate and increase lean tissue – muscle and bone. This will boost her metabolism to lose or maintain weight, keep her muscles and bones strong to perform daily activities more easily and help avoid injury, and keep her body fat percentage at a healthy level to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

We build muscle and bone through regeneration, which means we must break muscle and bone tissue down in order for the body to build more. The more we stress our muscles and bones, the stronger they will become. The definition of strength training is contracting a muscle or muscle group repeatedly with load until exhaustion – until you can’t do another repetition without losing proper form. Load can be either body weight (think push-ups or crunches) or external load such as free weights, medicine balls, kettlebells, resistance bands or tubes. It is recommended that women perform 1-3 sets of strength training exercises that target all major muscle groups (legs, core, upper body) 1-3 times per week. The proper amount of external load for strength training for basic fitness is the amount at which your last repetition in a set falls between 8 and 16. (If you can’t do 8 reps in a set the load is too heavy and if you can easily do more than 16 reps the load is too light.) The key to proper strength training is rest. It takes bone and muscle 48 hours to recover and regenerate after a strength training workout. Without this rest period, you will continually break down tissue with no opportunity to rebuild. So, while you can do cardio exercise on back-to-back days and even do cardio and strength training together in one workout, you should not strength train the same muscle groups on back-to-back days.

Flexibility Training

Aging does a number on collagen in our ligaments, tendons and muscles, making us less flexible. This, along with muscle mass breakdown, decreases the range of motion in our joints. As a result, we begin to compensate for that loss of joint mobility by developing dysfunctional movement. This dysfunctional movement makes us more likely to get injured during our usual workouts or activities of everyday life. Weak muscles, lack of joint flexibility, and dysfunctional movement also lead to balance problems. But flexibility training, or stretching, is easily and quickly incorporated into our other workout routines.

First rule of flexibility training: never stretch before working out when your muscles are cold. Numerous studies have been done on pre and post workout stretching and there is no benefit to static stretching before a workout. And, in fact, you’re more likely to over-stretch a muscle when it’s “cold” subsequently increasing your risk of injury. If you feel you must stretch before working out, do a warm up first. For similar reasons, I also recommend warming up before doing a strength training session – a minute or two of high-knee marching is sufficient. Second rule of flexibility training: always stretch all the muscles you’ve worked after every strength training and cardio routine. Hold each stretch for 20-30 seconds for 1 or 2 sets.

Take your flexibility training to the highest level by including mind-body exercises like yoga, mat Pilates or martial arts in your weekly routine. These also specifically train balance which is a great way to round out the ideal workout formula.

Incorporating all of these components equally can seem daunting, particularly if you aren’t already doing at least one form of exercise regularly. But anything you do will be a benefit to you immediately. Start small and add on gradually. Plus, now more than ever there are many venues, from group classes to DVDs, that incorporate cardio, strength and flexibility training all in one workout.

Fitness and all its components are about being healthy, not about a number on the scale or a size on a garment. We will all age, we will all likely suffer injuries and accidents. Genetics and some environmental factors beyond our control raise our risks for diseases of all kinds. But the quest for fitness is within reach for every single one of us. A fit life can reduce the risks of many diseases, help us to cope better in the aging process and increase the probability of living a long, active and fulfilling life. A fit person isn’t guaranteed a disease-free life but she is in a better position to fight disease and have a better quality of life than individuals who aren’t fit.

Fitness and thinness aren’t the same thing. Studies bear out that thin people who don’t incorporate exercise, healthy eating and proper rest into their daily lives are at higher risk of contracting cardiovascular-related diseases compared those who are fit, even those who are considered overweight but fit. Therefore, I’ve presented to you the components of a balanced exercise program in terms of health, not body weight. But here’s the beauty of it – if you incorporate a balanced exercise program into your life along with a healthy diet and proper rest, a healthy body-weight and, more importantly, a healthy lean mass to fat mass ratio and all the benefits that accompany it can be achieved and maintained for a lifetime.

Hopefully by now you’ve been incorporating April’s Small Steps – Movement and Food Substitutions. The One Small Step series is about incorporating small changes in diet and exercise each month over a series of several months to get you closer to that fit and happier you. It’s time for May’s One Small Step – Go Old School.

Old School Exercise

The idea here is to take it outside and exercise one day each week without concern for special equipment, membership fees or a fitness class schedule. New to exercise? Then this should be low impact, like walking. Already exercising regularly? Now’s the time to either add one more day to your cardio routine (old school style) or take one of your familiar weekly workouts up a notch outdoors – increase the intensity from walking to walk/jog intervals, for example. If you jog or run outdoors already, then try some jog/sprint intervals one day per week. Remember, this is one small step – you only need to find 45 minutes to an hour once per week to fit this in. Plan ahead and have a back-up day in the inevitable event that life (or weather) gets in the way of your old school workout.

Some forethought can help you stay on track and make sure you’re setting yourself up for success. Ignore whatever you’ve read or heard about the best time of day or best day of the week to exercise. The best day and time is when you can and will do it. Once you’ve selected your top two days and times, make it a priority. Whatever you use to record doctor’s appointments or business meetings – whether smart phone, Outlook or old-fashioned wall calendar – schedule your old school workout day and your back-up day. In terms of exercising, make your “week” begin on your exercise day. For example, maybe the best day of the week for you is a Friday and your second pick is Wednesday. If you think of your exercise week in a traditional sense (Sunday-Saturday) and something comes up on Friday, then it’s too late to have a make-up on Wednesday. You’ll find yourself scrambling to squeeze it in on Saturday and, if you don’t, you’ll feel like you’ve failed. However if, in this example, you think of your exercise week as running from Friday through Thursday, you have set yourself up for success. What do you do with your make-up day if you exercised on your first-choice day? Do something specifically for you or, better yet, set a habit of another exercise day. Don’t let that very important back-up hour be hijacked by some other weekly chore or task.

Another way to stay on track is to get a workout buddy – your spouse, a co-worker, friend, your child. When you are counting on each other you keep one another accountable and honest, not to mention the time will fly by with another person. If you’re working out alone, bring an iPod or other MP3 device so you can listen to your favorite music. Studies show we workout longer and harder when we listen to music while we exercise. Not into music? Listen to an audio book, comedy routine or your favorite podcast. The idea is to make the workout seem less like work by distracting yourself with something you enjoy.

Stay safe and injury free. Invest in good quality, proper footwear (walking sneakers for walking, running shoes for jogging/running). If you have a softer surface nearby to amble on, such as a track or a dirt trail, choose that over pavement for some or all of your trek. If possible, exercise in daylight. If you must do your workout in the dark, wear reflective clothing, stay on sidewalk-lined, well-lit streets and always face on-coming traffic (on the left side of street). Stretch all the muscles you’ve worked at the conclusion of the workout. Stay hydrated. Plain, cold water is best for the average one-hour workout.

Old School Diet

What I remember about our daily diet when I was younger is that eating out was rare and reserved for special occasions, the only option for fresh produce was in-season fruits and veggies, and large meals tended to be cooked on the weekends and provided several leftover meals during the week. When you compare the obesity rates from then to now it’s clear we, as a society, were doing something right then that we aren’t doing now.

If you eat restaurant or take-out meals (don’t forget to count a coffee and bagel on the way to work) one or more times per week regularly, begin by reducing that occurrence by one meal per week. Next month, subtract another take-out/restaurant meal from your weekly schedule and so on. Remember the small steps motto, don’t drop all take-out meals cold turkey, you will quickly become overwhelmed and give up. Start with one per week and go from there.

Maybe your restaurant meals are as rare as they were when you were a kid. Is your downfall those crazy, busy weeknights when you tend to throw together a meal from a series of boxes, cans, jars and frozen concoctions from the grocery store? You pay a premium for those processed, pre-made items. Shift the extra dollars from processed to pre-prepped whole foods. In large grocers you can find pre-chopped veggies and meat to make it quick and easy to throw together a healthy stir-fry in 20 minutes. Also, consider making a habit out of preparing a large meal or two on weekends so that you have leftover options (and no pans to clean) on the busiest of your weeknights.

If you’re pretty good about avoiding pre-made, processed meals then your old school move could be all about getting the most nutrition out of what you’re eating. One nice thing about modern-day produce and the global pantry is, if you need fresh strawberries in Vermont in December, you can get them. But, let’s face it, they’re expensive and they don’t taste anything like a Vermont-grown June strawberry. Nor are they likely as nutritious. Temperature variants and exposure to air and light over travel time causes fresh fruits and veggies to lose some of their vitamins and nutrients. Also, the more you cook produce the more vitamins and nutrients leech out. So, if you make it a priority to buy produce in season – and, if possible, local – it will most likely mean that they’re at their peak in taste and nutrition and, as a bonus, the most economical. If they taste better you and your kids will likely eat more of them. Eat them raw or minimally cooked in order to get the most nutrients out of them.

What you may have noticed about May’s Go Old School Exercise and Diet plans is that it’s a boost to your budget as well as your fitness. Having a little extra change in your pocket is an added incentive. May is a beautiful time of year to get outside and fresh, local produce is beginning to arrive at markets across the country. There is no better time to go old school with your fitness than right now.

Author’s Note: Always speak with your doctor before beginning any new exercise program.